The many shades of life
Aditi Garg

Faces, Friends & Other Stories
by Anuradha Rajkumari Choudhry. Rupa & Co. Pages 109. Rs 150.

LIFE is full of stories. Some are sad, some happy, some complicated and some without any definite ending. We experience a variety of emotions in our own lives and through the lives of those close to us. Even distant people who are not related to us in any manner can become sources of inspiration or objects of detestation. Each story may have different connotations for different people and even for the same person at different times.

Anuradha Rajkumari Choudhry has an impressive line-up of issues that she deals with deftly in her stories. The topics that she chooses are as diverse as a daughter meeting her stepmother for the first time, the facade of a happy family and lost hope. The author’s education in sociology has undoubtedly had an influence on her writing. The social backgrounds and characters of the people in all the tales are clearly etched. She has also been associated with research, book editing and journalism. Her language is surprisingly simple and except for a few instances, she stays away from unnecessary similes.

The book comprises 10 short stories that are so close to reality that they hardly read like spun yarns. Lakheshwar reminds us of the many times we doubt someone’s sincerity only for it to be restored and makes us feel ashamed. In Wisdom Tooth the pain of the narrator and her experiences with a despised colleague are compelling. The Happy Family and Mala’s Visit have women as their central characters. The frustration and anger of a village chief over his guests’ behaviour is palpable in Friends which brings out how something that is acceptable in one culture might highly intolerable in another. When Mintu was Sad makes the readers wish that the story would never end.

Though the stories are well written, some of them have endings that are too vague. It is a refreshing change to read stories that are not weighed down with difficult words. The best part about the book is that it can be read in fits and starts and does not require a long sitting.

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